Thoreau Matters - November 21st Issue

Message from Mr. Coch

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Dear Thoreau Community:

I wanted to briefly introduce myself to the community.  My name is Mr. Jon Coch (Cook). I have been named as the Interim Principal at Thoreau MS.  I look forward to the opportunity to serve in this role.

Before being named Interim Principal, which started this past Monday, I have had various roles in the county since January 2002.  In that tenure, I have been a 6th grade teacher, math resource teacher, Assistant Principal, and most recent, Principal at Navy Elementary for 8 and a half years. 

Family is very important to me.  My wife, Kristen, teaches in FCPS, and I have two wonderful daughters, Madelyn, who is in 7th grade and Alayna who is in 5th grade. 

Outside of school, I enjoy spending time with my family, reading, playing basketball, and playing various other sports. I am from Indianapolis, Indiana; therefore, I am an Indianapolis Colts fan! 

In my first days at Thoreau, everyone has been very welcoming!  I have had an opportunity to meet the staff and students, visit classrooms, review safety procedures, recognize students for good citizenship, and learn the maze of the building.

I look forward to meeting some of you at the “Meet and Greet” on Monday, November 25th, at 10:00 AM in the library.

Thank you and have a great day!

Jon Coch

Interim Principal

Thoreau Middle School


Upcoming Important Dates

  • Monday, November 25th - Tuesday, November 26th:  No after-school activities or late buses
  • Wednesday, November 27th - Friday, November 29th:  Thanksgiving holiday
  • Friday, December 20th:  No after-school activities or late buses
  • Monday, December 23rd - Friday, January 3rd:  Winter holiday

Poole and Gabro

English teachers Michelle Gabro and Denise Poole work with students to choose their next literary read from Thoreau's library.


Student Council Association (SCA) Food Drive

The SCA will be hosting a competition between the teams to collect canned food and nonperishable items to donate to Food for Others, located in Fairfax, VA.  Canned goods and nonperishable items can be sent to school with your child and delivered to his/her science classroom by Friday, December 6th.  Thanks for your support!


Chaperone Opportunity for 8th Grade Parents

The 8th grade math and civics departments are looking for additional chaperones for the December field trips to Finance Park.  Students will be going on the field trip with their respective team.  These are the dates each team will attend:

  • Tuesday, December 3rd:  Turtles (McCullock/Renfrew)
  • Friday, December 6th:  Falcons (Guy/McClanahan)
  • Monday, December 9th:  Hawks (Valenti)
  • Tuesday, December 10th:  Hawks (Christoff)
  • Wednesday, December 11th:  Wombats (Alley/Lefave)

Follow this link to get more information and to sign-up.  Thanks!


Federal Impact Aid Survey - Final Countdown

On Wednesday, October 23rd, the Federal Impact Aid Survey was sent home with all of our students.  FCPS requires one completed form to be returned for every student. Please confirm with your child that they did turn in their form.

Returning this form is important because information from this survey results in an additional $3 million in grants each year from the U.S. Department of Education. These funds are used to support all FCPS schools and centers.

For each school-aged child in your household, please complete, sign, date, and return the survey to your child's school. If sections 1 and 2 of the survey do not apply to you, just check the box in section 3. All forms must be signed, dated.  All results are confidential.

See this link for details or call Thoreau's main office at 703-846-8001 with questions.


Lost and Found

Students are reminded during lunch to check the lost and found.  Uncollected items will be donated by Thanksgiving so please also remind your child to claim their belongings.


Suspense Breakout

As a culminating event for the "Crafting Suspense" unit, creative writing students played a Stranger Things themed breakout game led by their teacher Jen Wharton and librarian Natalie Finn.  The objective of the game was for the students to physically experience the literary element of suspense as they worked against time.


Fall Picture Retake Day

Monday, December 2nd retakes for fall pictures will occur from 7:30 AM - 12:00 PM at Thoreau.  This is the last opportunity for your child's photo to be taken and included in this year's yearbook. 


2019-2020 Thoreau Yearbook

Headshots taken by LifeTouch are used for your child's official yearbook picture.  If your child missed the fall picture days, please ensure that they attend school on the picture retake day of Monday, December 2nd.  

  • A generic version of the yearbook can be purchased through December for $35.00, and for $40.00 beginning in January at MySchoolBucks.com.
  • An upgraded version can be purchased for an additional cost at yearbookforever.com.  This site will show the customized prices and options.

Questions?  Please contact Thoreau yearbook sponsor Ms. Galeet BenZion at gbenzion@fcps.edu.


My School Bucks (MSB) Update

MSB is up and running for class fees and school store purchases.  Please visit My School Bucks.


After-School Programs and Late Buses

After-school programs and buses are underway.  After-school information will always be communicated via our website, the TMS after-school Google site, the PTA newsletter, Eagle News (our morning news show), and will be published in future issues of Thoreau Matters.

For planning purposes, the last day of after-school activities is Thursday, May 28th.  The after-school program will not meet on student holidays, or during inclement weather cancellations.  In addition, there will be no after-school activities or buses on the following dates: 

  • Monday, November 25th - Tuesday, November 26th
  • Friday, December 20th
  • Friday, January 17th
  • Friday, February 14th
  • Friday, April 3rd
  • Friday, May 22nd

Vienna's Club Phoenix

Want to hang out with your friends, play fun games and participate in some pretty awesome events?  The Vienna Teen Center's Club Phoenix is your place to be during after-school hours!

Thoreau's after-school program is offering a Club Phoenix shuttle bus that will transport students from Thoreau to the teen center at 3:15 PM every Thursday that the after-school program is running.  Only students who participate in Thoreau's after-school program and are registered with Club Phoenix will be able to use this service.  This is a first-come, first-serve service.  Only the first 20 students will be accepted.  The students will then be able to participate in Club Phoenix activities until the center closes at 6:30 PM.  Students will need a mode of transportation home from the center.  The registration form is available at the teen center, in Thoreau's front office or via email to Vienna teen center employee Natalie Duncan at Natalie.Duncan@ViennaVA.gov.  Please submit your Club Phoenix teen shuttle registration form to Thoreau after-school specialist Colleen Taylor as soon as possible, but know that your child can not ride the shuttle bus until a registration form has been received and approved by Colleen Taylor.


Guyer

Engineering simulation and fabrication students finished designing, constructing, and testing truss bridges built out of balsa wood.  The process began with research and sketching to develop a design that was modeled on the computer, and went through a stress analysis to simulate weak points.  Designs were changed to reinforce joints, and bridges were then tested to see how much weight would cause structural failure.  The breaking point was then calculated.  Joe and Ben seemed to enjoy the engineering process.


Here Comes the Bus Mobile App

To help you know when your child’s bus is approaching your stop, FCPS is now using the Here Comes the Bus mobile app. Here Comes the Bus is a free school bus tracking app that can simplify morning and afternoon routines for parents and students by giving real-time bus location and text or email notification alerts, helping everybody get to the bus stop on time.

Here Comes the Bus® uses FCPS global positioning system (GPS) data and an easy-to-use customizable map that works on one or multiple devices, such as a tablet or smartphone.

Get detailed instructions on how to get started using the app here.


PTA News and Announcements

Expressing Thanks to Our Staff

On Tuesday, November 26th, the PTA will continue a popular annual tradition at Thoreau.  We will show our appreciation to all 180 teachers, staff members, and bus drivers by providing each person with a pie to enjoy for Thanksgiving.  These pies are a token of our thankfulness.  Our hospitality committee is asking for donations of either a homemade pie or one from your favorite bakery, and a few volunteers to help sort and package the pies.  Please sign-up here to donate or help. 

Thoreau Directory

The PTA is currently preparing the annual online directory of family contact information.  In the coming weeks, parents will receive an email inviting them to verify their family directory listing so it is accurate and up-to-date.  Please respond by logging into the directory, which is hosted by AtoZ Connect, so our community directory can be an effective resource for Thoreau families.

Help the PTA

Please join the PTA and consider making a donation to our no-fuss fundraiser.

Other easy ways you can earn money for Thoreau are:

  • register your Harris Teeter VIC card with school code 3258
  • designate Thoreau for your Amazon Smile charity 
  • keep collecting and sending in Box Top

Andrea Kramer, Thoreau PTA President

president@thoreaupta.org 

 

2019-20 PTA Board Members

Andrea Kramer, President

Irina Smirnoff, Vice President

Amy Vernon, Treasurer

Wendy Pearson, Secretary

 

Thoreau Food Program

Thoreau will be pilot the first middle school program with Food for Others this year.  Food for Others is an organization that provides schools with weekly "Power Packs."  These packs include nonperishable food items for school-aged children in need.  Once this partnership begins in November, families who would like to contribute can do so directly with Food for Others.

Taylor

Phyllis Taylor's 3rd period family and consumer science class finishing a cooking lesson.